Then it hit her. The entire time she’d been talking to him she completely forgot about her phone. Her mom should’ve been home by then, and she wasn’t. She rushed into her room, trying not to panic that maybe her mom had called to tell her something was wrong and she’d missed the calls because she’d left her phone in her purse in her room.
Pulling it out from where it was buried in her purse, she immediately saw all the missed calls and texts. “Shit,” she muttered, looking through her missed calls log.
She had several from Angel and one from Valerie but none from her mom. She clicked over to her texts and saw she did have one from her mom, so she clicked it immediately.
Running late. Lots of traffic. Stuck on the Cajon Pass. Don’t wait up, hon. I’ll call in a couple of hours.
It’d been sent a little over an hour ago. She frowned, but at the same time, she was relieved. The chat had gone on so long she’d completely forgotten about that dinner she’d planned on making. She went through the rest of her texts quickly. Valerie wanted to talk. Angel was wondering why she wasn’t answering and if everything was okay. She hit speed dial and called Angel, knowing he’d think it odd that she’d been chatting with Leonardo for over four hours. She had no choice but to just tell him the truth. She wasn’t about to start lying about this. And it stood to reason they’d have a lot to catch up on. There was no reason to.
She was still waiting for him to answer when the doorbell rang. She walked out into the front room and heard a phone ringing just outside the door, and then Angel answered. “Hold on,” she said, peeking out the front door window. “Oh, it’s you,” she said, swinging the door open for Angel, who stood on her porch with the phone to his ear.
They both hung up, putting their phones down as she unlocked the metal door. “I was worried,” he said. “I knew you were alone today, and after calling you a few times, I just—”
She hugged him before he could finish. “I’m sorry,” she said against his shoulder. “I just now realized my phone was buried in my purse all this time.”
“Did you fall asleep or something?” he asked, looking down at the loose shorts and cutoff T-shirt she wore with no bra.
She shook her head, moving over so he could come in. As soon as she locked the metal door then the wooden one, Angel looked around. “Is your mom home yet?”
“No.”
Immediately, Angel’s hands were under her T-shirt, caressing her bare breasts, and he kissed her. Without giving her a moment to speak—think—he lifted her shirt, cupped her breast in his hand, and sucked her nipple. “I’ve had a hard-on all day thinking about last night,” he said breathlessly in between sucking. “How long until your mom’s home?”
“She told me not to wait up,” Sarah said breathlessly, already completely aroused.
Instantly, he lifted her, and she wrapped her legs around him, already tingling in all the right places. “You had me worried, bad girl,” he said, squeezing her ass. “You owe me.”
“Gladly,” she said, taking his face in her hands and devouring his mouth all the way to her bedroom. “You mad at me?” she asked between kisses.
“Never,” he whispered back.
He let her down softly but continued to kiss her tenderly, holding her tightly against him like he only ever did when he was feeling something really intense, and she knew then he must’ve really been worried.
“Forever and always?” she asked, smiling against his lips, her hands still cupping his face.
“I’m yours,” he responded as she knew he would then added, “You’re mine.”
“Forever and always,” she assured him, kissing him even deeper.
It was something they’d started doing over a year ago playfully, but somehow it stuck, and each knew exactly how to respond whenever one of them brought it up.
Kissing her one last time as they stood next to her bed, he pulled away, staring at her with the intense stare she knew meant only one thing. In the next instant, he spun her around then pulled off her shorts. She stepped out of them, spreading her legs, and bent over for him, smiling when he groaned loudly in response. In the following few seconds, she heard the familiar sound of him unzipping, and then he grabbed her by the waist and buried himself inside her.
Letting an unabashed moan out at the beautiful sensation of having him so deep inside her, she moved her ass higher up so he’d go even deeper. She wasn’t expecting this tonight at all. Even after the night they’d had last night, she lifted her knee onto the bed, needing him even deeper. He obliged, slamming in as deep as possible.
Telling him about her epic chat with Leonardo was definitely going to have to wait for another time. It could be hours before her mother got home, and she didn’t want to ruin what felt like might be another amazing marathon of letting him take her every way he pleased.
Chapter 10
Angel
Four hours?
Angel bit his tongue, gripping the phone tightly, and listened to Sarah as she went on and on excitedly, telling him about the long ass video chat she’d had with Leo last night, something she said she was going to talk to him about last night until things heated up and moved into the bedroom. She said she’d kept waiting for the perfect moment to interrupt all the things they’d done but there never was one. She knew once her mom was home it’d be a while until they could enjoy her bedroom that way again. He’d give her that she’d made a good call there but still. Four fucking hours? And that’s why she’d ignored all his calls and texts?
“I forgot to ask him if he ever gets insomnia as bad as I do,” she said in the midst of her excited banter. “Since my mom’s never had a problem falling asleep, I always assumed it might be something passed down from my dad. I’ve been writing other things down that I forgot to ask, and I’ll ask when I we chat tonight because—”
“Tonight?” Angel finally spoke up. “You’re chatting with him again tonight?”
“Yeah, well, when he asked when was the best time to chat I told him in the evenings when I was likely home from school, done with work, or spending time with you, so he said he’d call again tonight.”
This is her brother, Angel reminded himself, taking a deep breath and trying not to think about the near-naked photo this near stranger sent Sarah.
“You’re not gonna chat for another four hours, are you?”
“No.” Sarah laughed softly. “I admit that was kind of ridiculous. I guess we just got carried away because we both had so many questions—questions I didn’t even realize I needed answered until I spoke to him—and I guess he felt the same way.”
Angel had a few questions of his own. Was this going to be an every night thing? What else had Leo said that might prove he was actually her brother and did he call her beautiful again or was he shirtless during the chat? But he refrained. He said he was going to be positive, and as much as it worried him that Sarah was already too excited about this, he’d trust that she’d use her head if the guy did anything questionable again.
Football season was about to begin and then school. For once, Angel was glad summer was over. He welcomed the distraction of the new school year. The last month alone had been too much to deal with. He needed to relax—unwind and set his sights on other things. He was almost pissed at himself for letting this bother him so much. He trusted Sarah, and that was all that should matter. Unfortunately, he was cursed with the almost obsessive need to protect his loved ones. He didn’t think she needed protecting from Sydney. That was a whole other worry and curiously one he preferred now. He finally accepted that other guys’ falling or being in love with Sarah, especially ones who knew her as well as Syd, was inevitable. As long as he trusted that she’d never hurt him—and he did, completely—he’d just have to deal with her admirers. He was determined that as long as they didn’t step over the line or do anything to piss him off he’d do his best to keep his cool.
He’d attempted to be unfazed by Sarah’s fast growing relationship with Leo, but she knew him too well. H
e hadn’t asked her to, but for the following couple of weeks, she kept the details of her conversations with the guy to a minimum, telling him only what he needed to know. Being busy with school, practice, games, and work helped.
Then, just three weeks after having that long ass chat with her brother and then a few with her dad, Sarah announced the inevitable. “I think I’m ready to meet Leonardo in person.”
They’d been sitting in a back booth of the restaurant after their shift, having dinner. Angel stared at her for a moment, curious that she didn’t say her dad also. “Just Leo? What about your dad?”
She shrugged, moving her food around on her plate. “I don’t know. I haven’t heard from him in a while.”
It wasn’t until that moment that it occurred to Angel she hadn’t mentioned her dad in the past week or so. Just Leo. “Why? Did something happen?”
Her eyes shot up and met his. “No.” She shook her head quickly. “We had a few three-way chats, and I spoke with Dad privately twice. The conversations with him never felt quite as comfortable as when I talk to Leonardo. I don’t know. It was weird, almost as if he were more interested in asking questions about my mom than me.”
“Your mom?”
“Yeah,” she nodded. “He asked a lot about stuff I didn’t remember. Like where we lived when I was very young and if we’d ever lived with anyone else. He wanted to know if it was always just the two of us or if there’d been anyone else helping us out financially. Stuff like that. I don’t know if he’s feeling guilty for not being there and needs some kind of confirmation that we didn’t suffer too much or what. But the whole time I could sense my answers weren’t satisfying him. Quite honestly, even though I really tried, I don’t remember that far back.”
“He can’t expect you to, Sarah.”
Inhaling deeply, she continued. “He mentioned some jewelry he’d hoped my mom had held on to so she could eventually pass it on to me and asked if she had, but she never has. The second time I spoke with him he brought it up again. I guess he thought I’d ask her, but I didn’t.” She frowned. “I know things were tough for us, and she mentioned needing to pawn stuff to get by. If she had to pawn the jewelry, so be it. I’m not gonna make her feel guilty for doing what she had to do. So why bring it up? If she still had the jewelry, I’m sure she would’ve mentioned it. Anyway”—she shrugged—“it’s been almost two weeks since I last spoke with him. No emails. No nothing. When I’ve asked Leonardo about it, he says he’s not sure what’s up with him either, only that the last he heard was he was working a lot of overtime.”
That still seemed odd. Almost two weeks? First, he’d gone out of his way and had even driven out to Flagstaff to hunt her down, and then once he found her he just disappeared? Not that Angel cared if her dad ever resurfaced again. Angel was still of the belief that the guy didn’t deserve to be a part of Sarah’s life, but he hated that he sensed Sarah’s disappointment. This was exactly what he’d been afraid of when she first told him about her dad looking for her. As much as he still didn’t trust Leo completely, at least his interest in meeting her hadn’t fallen through.
“So when did you wanna meet with Leo?”
“I don’t know. We’re all so busy. I’ll talk to him about it tonight. I was thinking maybe we can meet halfway somewhere to make it fair to both of us,” she continued. “But he said he’d be willing to drive down here to meet me.”
Angel chewed slowly, mentally going over his tight schedule. Sarah would choose the busiest time of the year for him to want to do this. But he’d be damned if he was going to let her go without him. He needed to meet this guy himself.
“So talk to him tonight and get a plan going, but give me some time so I can work something out.”
“Oh, yeah, I know,” she said, setting her fork down on her plate. “My schedule is pretty crammed as well. And now I’m training for that marathon to boot.”
“Check my game schedule when you decide. My work schedule is pretty flexible, but games and practices aren’t, and I really wanna be there with you, babe.”
Sarah reached over and touched his hand. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”
Pleasantly surprised by the sudden change of topic, Angel smiled. “I’ll never get tired of hearing it, but, yeah, I think you have.”
“Well, let me say it again because I don’t think you realize how much I appreciate having someone so incredibly special in my life.” She squeezed his hand and she smiled, but her eyes pinched and her lip began to quiver as her eyes welled up.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Angel asked, sitting up and feeling the ease he’d begun to feel sucked out of him.
She shook her head rapidly even though he could see it was a struggle for her not to cry. “It’s just been so overwhelming.” She wiped a tear away and reached for a napkin. “Everything that’s happened lately has been so surreal. Every conversation I’ve had with Leonardo and my dad. I know it hasn’t been easy for you. It’s hard for you to trust, and I totally understand why you’re skeptical, yet you’ve been so supportive and patient. I know you, my love.” She shrugged, taking a deep breath with a teary but very genuine smile. “I’ve seen it in your eyes and felt it in your mood changes. You’re not thrilled about this, but you’re trying so hard to stay open-minded for me. Even today I was worried you might think it’s too soon, that we might argue, but, instead, you’re being just as wonderful as always.” She startled him by getting up suddenly then coming around the table and wrapping her arms around his neck. “I just don’t know how I got so lucky to find you.”
Angel wrapped his arms around her waist, thankful that he hadn’t said it was too soon like he’d been so tempted to. “I’m the lucky one,” he said, kissing her cheek then pulling away. “But you’re right. I am happy for you. I really am. I just worry. I always will.”
She had no way of knowing that, after seeing just how emotional she was becoming about this whole thing, his worry level just shot up a few hundred notches.
“I know you do,” she said, sniffling, and Angel reached for another napkin, handing it to her. She took it and wiped her nose. “And that’s why I wanna make sure you’re there when I meet him. I could take my mom or Sydney or even Valerie or my aunt and uncle, but I want you there. I wanna give you that peace of mind I know you’re dying for. So I promise I’ll work around your schedule even if it means pushing it out. I can wait.”
Angel wrapped his arms around her, inhaling deeply. She’d said exactly what he needed to hear.
She did that a lot.
No wonder he was so hopelessly in love with her.
~~~
Finally they’d gone a few weeks with neither the mention of meeting her brother and dad nor any irritating revelations about Syd. Angel was enjoying a rare lazy Sunday afternoon watching football with the guys when his phone rang. Sarah had been out shopping with her mom and had texted him earlier to tell him they were going to catch a movie while they were out.
He glanced at the time on his phone before answering. It was around the time he’d expected to hear from her. “Hey, babe,” he answered.
“Are you still watching football?”
Angel walked out of the family room where the guys were being way too loud and into the kitchen. “Yeah, it’s still on,” he said, opening the fridge.
“Oh, okay, well just give me a call when it’s over.”
He finished taking a swig of milk straight from the jug and put it back in the fridge. “I can come pick you up now if you want.”
“Not if you’re gonna be watching football. You know the only games I ever get into are yours. Besides, we can’t talk with your friends there. Just give me a call whenever they leave. Doesn’t matter if it’s late. I’m home now and probably just gonna work on that paper I have to work on.”
“I can talk now, “Angel said, sensing something was up. He walked out into the backyard. “The Charger game is over. Only reason we’re watching now is ’cause Romero bet on this game and
we like watching him lose his ass.”
“You sure?”
He took a seat on one of the patio chairs and sat all the way back. “Yeah, what’s up?”
“Well, first,” she said, her words taking a bit of an excited tone as if she had something juicy to share. “Guess what I found out today?’
“What,” Angel asked, glad this didn’t sound serious.
“There was a jewelry heist in the movie we watched, and the thieves made off with millions. Afterwards, when we went to eat, we talked about the movie, and my mom said she never would’ve believed jewelry could be worth so much but that among the things in the bags my dad left behind with the money she found when I was a baby there was some jewelry. She said my dad never even mentioned the jewelry, not to her or my grandmother, who used to deliver his messages. She held onto it for years, but when money started getting tight, she did exactly what I imagined she would and started pawning the jewelry off piece by piece. One day she took in the one she called the big one to get appraised. She thought it was silver, but it turned out to be platinum, and the stone on it was this rare blue diamond.” The phone got a little muffled, and she lowered her voice even more. “It was appraised at more than half a million dollars, but because she couldn’t explain how she’d come to have it and it was very likely stolen, they offered her just under a quarter of a million. Of course she took it. That was the year she told me we’d be staying in Flagstaff for good.”
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